Population
Greater Kings Mountain 10,320
City Limits 7,206
Tfce figure for Greater Kings Mountain is derived from
tiro 1955 Kings Mountain city directory census. The city
Uadis figure is from the United States census of 1950.
M Pages
Today
VOL 69 No. 29
Established 1889
Kings Mountain, N. C., Thursday, July 17, 1958
Sixty-Ninth Year
PRICE TEN CENTS
Local News
Bulletins
BACK FROM VACATION
Dr. W. P. Gerberding returns
this week from a vacation in
the middle west and will con
duct Sunday services at St.
Matthew’s Lutheran Church.
PERMIT ISSUED
J. W. Webster issued a per
mit this week to Robert Ken
nedy to remodel his house on
Gold street at an estimated
cost of $2,000.
REVIVAL SERVICES
The Rev. Albert E. Harris
of Asheville is conducting a
series of revival services at the
Chestnut Ridge Baptist Church
this week. Services will be held
at 7:30 each night through Sat
urday.
SCHOOL BOARD MEETS
Kings Mountain city school
board will hold its regular
meeting Monday, July 21 at
Central school. It promises to
be a routine session, B. N. Bar
nes, City Schools superinten
dent, said Wednesday.
REVIVAL
Rev. Jack Douglas Weaver,
pastor of Ellerbe’s First Bap
tist church, will conduct a week
end revival July 18-20 at Tem
ple Baptist Church. Oren White
will lead the song service.
KIWANIS CLUB
Charles K. Foy, principal of
Gastonia’s Peeden Elementary
school and past president of
the Gastonia Toastmasters
club, will address Kings Moun
tain Kiwanians at their Thurs
day night meeting at the Wo
man’s club. The club convenes
at 6:45 p. m.
LICENSE SALES
City privilege license sales
totaled $3,603 through Monday
Acting Clerk Grace C. Carpen
ter reported yesterday. Licenses
are purchaseable without pen
alty during July and are re
quired of all firms transacting
business in Kings Mountain.
Penalty for non-purchase ap
plies August 1.
TO CONVENTION
Martin Harmon, Herald edi
tor, and Mrs. Harmon will go
to Asheville Thursday for the
joint convention of the North
Carolina and South Carolina
Press associations.
LIONS MEETING
Miss Phyllis Dean will give
a behind the scenes report on
the Miss North Carolina Beau
ty Pageant at the Thursday
night meeting of the Lions
Club. J. W. Webster will also
give a brief report of the Lions
Convention in Chicago. The
club convenes at Woman’s
Club at 7:00 p. m.
Weedy Lots Get
City Attention
The board of commissioners
called attention Tuesday night to
the city ordinance requiring own
ers to mow weeds periodically
and to otherwise keep them free
of debris.
uen Bridges said R. G. Whis
nant had voiced a complaint con.
cerning the lot between Kings
Mountain Cotton Oil Company
and Meadowbrook Road and
Mayor Glee Bridges said he had
heard similar complaints about
a vacant lot at the corner of Lac
key street and N. Piedmont ave
nue.
The board instructed the May
or to ask owners of the lots to
mow them voluntarily and held
in abeyance decision as to what
action the city might take on
non-compliance, pending advice
from the city attorney.
City Court Posts
"Cash Only" Sign
Clearing up City Recorder's
Court records, Judge Jack White
announced that no more credit
would be available to court
offenders unable to pay prompt
ly. Solicitor George Thomasson
read the names of 20 persons
whose jail sentences will go in
to effect if credited fines aren’t
paid.
Capias was ordered issued
for the following court debt
ors:
Wilbur W. Wright, Bill R.
Garner, James Wade, Loretta
Wells, Mrs. Fred Cash, Paul
Crenshaw, Earl Sanders, Napo
leon Hogue, James Kilgore,
Joshua Gist, Jack Junior Seagle,
William A. Groomes, Roger
Walker, Willie C. Hayes, Eueal
Smith, Junior, Eld Raney, Will
iam Sanders. Horace Sisk, Ran
dolph Ross, and Howard H.
JSiipp.
MISS CONGENIALITY — Phyllis Dean, Kings Mountain's represen
tative in the Miss North Carolina contests last weekend, smiles
broadly as she holds the trophy emblematic of her election by the
! contestants as Miss Congeniality. (Photo by Glenn Wall.)
Phyllis Dean Cops
Congeniality Title
TO KENTUCKY — Rev. Howard
T. Cook, former pasior of Second
Baptist Church, left Monday for
Gamaliel, Ky., where he will ser
ve as pastor of the Gamaliel First
Baptist church.
Cook Accepts
Kentucky Call
Rev. Howard T. Cook, former
pastor of Second Baptist church,
left Monday for Gamaliel, Ky.,
where he will assume the pastor
ate of Gamaliel’s First Baptist
eluirch.
Rev. Cook will deliver his first
sermon Sunday.
A native of Cleveland County, [
Mr. Cook served the Second Bap
tist church as pastor more than
three years. He resigned on Jan
uary 27. A former building con
tractor, Mr. Cook entered the
ministry in 1949. He attended
Gardner-Webb college and Clear
Creek Springs Bible School, Ky.
His first pastorate was the North
Concord Baptist church, Pineville,
Ky., which he resigned to accept
the Kings Mountain charge.
Mrs. Cook is the former Vernice
Grigg.
The Gamaliel church has a- j
bout 350 members. Gamaliel is i
near Nashville, Tenn.
Second Baptist members held I
a going-away party for Mr. and
Mrs. Cook last week.
Gregory Fund
Now At $286.93
Friends of Rev. John Gregory :
reported additional gifts of $60.58 I
received thjs week by the minis- |
ter who has been ill for many i
months and who will face a deli
cate operation in the near future. |
At one time pastor of Park
Grace Church of the Nazarine
and of First Church of the Nazar,
ine, Gastonia, Rev. Gregory suf
(Continued on Page Eight)
Kings Mountain
Entry In Top
Ten Finalists
BY DAVID BAITY
“It was really a wonderful ex
perience,” Miss Ph/yllis Dean com
mented when she returned from
a three-day whirl at the Miss Nor
th Carolina Beauty Pageant
where she was selected as one of
the top ten finalists and honored
with the title “Miss Congeniali
ty.”
“Betty Lane Evans, named Miss
North Carolina of 1959 in the
Saturday night festivities, is a
very lovely, wonderful girl,” Miss
Dean said.
“But all the girls were lovely
and wonderful,” she added.
Kings Mountain’s brunette beau
ty returned home laden with pri
zes and gifts including the coveted
“Miss Congeniality” trophy, a
S250 scholarship to Brevard or
Elon colleges for placing in the
(Continued on Page Eight)
City Logs Cash Surplus Of $85,495
Dr. Plonk Weighs
Raleigh Decision
300 Petitioners
Ask Surgeon
To Remain Here
Dr. George W. Plonk, Kings
Mountain surgeon, was still
weighing Wednesday afternoon
a decision on returning to Ra
leigh as a practicing surgeon.
Dr. Plonk, in Raleigh, told the
Herald via telephone that peti
tions bearing 300 signatures pre
sented him Monday night and
urging that he remain a Kings
Mountain surgeon ‘‘had a bigger
effect on me than anything that
ever happened.”
Dr. Plonk said that if he re
turned to Kings Mountain this
weekend his return would indi
cate a decision to continue prac
tice here. He had originally plan
ned to go to Raleigh permanent
ly, having made a prior committ
ment to Dr. Gordon Sinclair, with
whom he planned to resume his
partnership.
Dr. Plonk told the Herald he
had presented the signed peti
tions to Dr. Sinclair, told him of
the problem of decision, and had
been released from his committ
ment.
Dr. Plonk had only praise for
the treatment he has been accord
ed since coming to Kings Moun
tain last November. He said, “The
doctors have been unusually co
operative in every way and the
Kings Mountain Hospital faciliti
es and staff are excellent.”
He said he appreciated very
much the evidence of Kings Moun
tain friendship and support, as
contained in the signed petitions.
Dr. Plonk is a Kings Mountain
native, son of Mr. and Mrs. C. S.
Plonk. A graduate of the Univer
sity of North Carolina, Dr. Plonk
attended the UNC Medical school,
served in Italy as an army doc
tor, and took a residency in Phil
adelphia. He is a member of the
American College of Surgeons. He
previously practiced surgery in
Murphy and Raleigh, before re
turning here.
Mrs. Plonk is also a former
Kings Mountain citizen. She • is
the f ormer Margaret Cooper dau
ghter of Dr. and Mrs. E. C. Coop
er.
CLOSED
The law offices of George B.
Thomasson will be closed July
21-26 while Mr. and Mrs. Thom
asson are vacationing at the
beach. Monday’s court session
will revert to bygone practices
with Sgt. Buck Bridges reading
out the warrants and Judge
Jack White questioning witness
es in the absence of Solicitor
Thomasson.
History Oi Home Savings & Loan
Reviewed At Anniversary Dinner
The 35-year history of Home
Savings & Loan association was
reviewed last Friday night, as
officers, directors, their wives and
other guests attended a dinner
meeting at the Woman’s Club.
A. H. Patterson, secretary
treasurer of the association since
its organization in April 1923,
made the report as gleaned from
minutes of the 35 years of ope
ration and inferred the old say
ing “the first million comes hard
est” was found true. In 1950, the
associa tion topped by only $9,000
the million assets figure. Today,
eight years later, the association
boasts three million in assets.
To obtain a charter, Mr. Pat
terson reported, the association
was required to have 300 pledged
shares on the old serial type of
stock. Pledged were 475 Shares by
F. Dilling, Dr. O. G. Falls, Elmer
Lumber Company, A. H. Patter
son, H. T. Fulton, Sr., Dr. J. E.
Anthony, M. Elmer Herndon, M.
L. Rogers, W. S. Dilling, and Har
ry Falls.
Of the original subscribers, on
ly Mr. Patterson, and Dr. Antho
ny both of Kings Mountain, Mr.
Herndon, now of Charlotte, and
Mr. Rogers, now of Albemarle,
are living.
First officers and directors
were Dr. O. G. Falls, president,
J. B. Thomasson, vice-president,
A. H. Patterson, secretary-treasur
er, W. S. Dilling H. T. Fulton, Sr.,
Dr. Anthony, and J. O. Plonk.
At the end of the first three
months of operation, the assets
had reached a total of $14,141.
Mr. Patterson said records
showed the association showed
steady progress and growth
throughout the 35 year history,
with exception of the depression
period. Assets of $300,000 in 1930
had dropped to $262,000 by 1936.
But the association rebounded and
had $406,000 assets by 1940.
Commenting on the depression
hardships, Mr. Patterson recalled
that one borrower, in response
to a request for payment on his
loan, replied, "How can I send
you money when there ain’t any?”
Originally chartered with a lim
itation of 10,000 shares, the as
sociation voted in 1952 and the
association obtained a revised
charter to provide for unlimited
shares.
Mr. Patterson noted that the
association had elected only two
presidents, the late Dr. Falls, and
Dr. J. E. Anthony, who succeeded
to the presidency in 1930.
He declared the greatest asset
to the growth of the association
had been “the cooperation and
consistent service of the direc
tors”.
Other highlights of the organi
zation's history, Mr. Patterson re
ported, were complete renovation
of the firm’s office building in
194S and opening in May 1957 of
a branch office at Bessemer City,
which represents $500,000 of the
associations total assets.
Dr. J. E. Anthony presided at
the dinner meeting and Jack
White, a director, welcomed the
guests. Special music was presen-;
ted by Miss Martha Laiighlin, of
Lawndale, soloist and pianist. Fa
vors were presented the ladies.
SPEAKER — Dr. Walter J. Miller,
of Charlotte, will deliver the
message at the community-wide
union service Sunday night at
Central Methodist church.
Millet To Speak
At Union Service
Dr. Walter J. Miller, superin
| tendent of the Charlotte district
of the Methodist Church, will de
liver the message at Sunday
night’s union service at Central
Methodist Church.
The service will be held at 8
o’clock.
Dr. Miller, who has served nu
merous prominent appointments
throughout the Western North
Carolina conference of the Meth
odist church, is a former pastor
of High Point’s Wesley Memorial
church and Salisbury’s First Me
thodist church.
“We invite members of all city
1 church congregations and others
to join us in this service,” Rev. J.
B. McLarty, pastor, said.
McDaniel Joins
Home S. & L
Joe H. McDaniel, Jr., spent his
j first day as the assistant secre
i tary-treasurer of Home Savings
& Loan association Wednesday,
j but was back on duty at the City
! Hall office Wednesday afternoon.
The fornier city clerk is volun
tarily aiding Acting Clerk Grace
[ C. Wolfe and other employees in
handling the routine of the office.
Meantime, working her first
! day at City Hall was Mrs. Dean
McDaniel, named by the board of
commissioners Tuesday night as
a city office stenographer. Other
member of the office staff iis
Mrs. Margaret P. Wilson.
W. F. Young, retiring assistant
secretary - treasurer of Home
Savings & Loan association, will
complete his duties Saturday. He
will leave Monday to attend a1
summer term at Catawba college,
preparatory to becoming a mem
ber of the Dallas high school fac
ulty in September.
_
Bootleg Barbers
Warning Subject
Kings Mountain Chapter No.
1049, Association of Master Bar
bers, called attention to North
Carolina law governing the bar
ber trade this week and said
numerous reports of "bootleg” j
barbering are being received.
It was pointed out that the
General Statutes require that a
person practicing the trade either
be a licensed barber or working
an apprenticeship under a licen
sed barber in a licensed barber
shop.
Other stipulations in the law
provide for inspection of shops,
requirement that barbers have a
health certificate, use clean tow
els and tools for each customer,
and maintain all tools, fixtures
and premises in a sanitary con
dition.
The law also stipulates that a
barber shop must be housed in a
separate building, in discretion
of the inspector.
The association said further j
reports on non-licensed barber
ing here would be referred to
state examiners for investigation
and legal action.
With Receivables
Surplus 3130,483;
Not Bugeted
The City of Kings Mountain
completed its 1957-58 operations
June 30 with a cash surplus of:
$85,495, A. M. Pullen & Company
auditors told city officials as they
completed their work this week.
The city showed an operating
surplus (which includes accounts
receivable) of $130,483.
The cash surplus was divided
as follows, retiring City Clerk Joe
McDaniel reported: general fund,
$56,161; debt service, $6,301, and
capital outlay fund $23,033.
The city commission adopted
finally Tuesday night at a special
session its 1958-59 budget as pre
viously adopted tentatively with
out budgeting the previous years'
surplus.
The total was $590,675.
The budget did not provide a]
contingency fund, and commis
sioners indicated a portion of the
general fund surplus would be
earmarked for this purpose.
In fact, the board delved into
the capital outlay surplus Tues
day night when it voted to accept
a bid of $7,798.64 from Murphy
Body Distributors, Wilson, N. C.,'
for an electrical department truck
body, including a great amount of
Hydraulic equipment.
The city had previously asked
bids on this equipment, but had
received no sealed bids, only a
quotation from Baker Equipment!
Company of Charlotte, for manu-|
ally - operated equipment. It had
declined to regard the Baker quo
tation as a bid.
The city also adopted the ten-1
tative tax rate of $1.50 per $100
valuation, including five cents for
the city recreation program. The
rate is unchanged from last year.
Moss Rejoins
Mohair Firm
■
Charles H. Moss returned to
Neisler division of Massachus
etts Mohair Plush Company Mon- i
day, it was announced by Alex j
Maino, general manager.
Mr. Maino said Mr. Moss
would serve as superintendent of
preparation and weaving at the
Margrace mill, the C-4 section of
the Patty-plant, and at the Pat
ricia plant with the exception of
the yarn dyehouse.
"Mr. Moss also will assist in
the development of new ideas
and fabrics looking forward to
increased production,” Mr. Maino
commented.
Associated with the predeces
sor company, Neisler Mills, Inc.,
from 1920 to July 1956, Mr. Moss
has since been supervisor of fur
niture cloth production for the
Chicopee Group of Johnson and
Johnson Mills, Cornelia, Ga. He
completed his duties at Cornelia I
June 1.
'Mr. Moss has continued to
maintain his residence here on
Grover Road.
City Employees
May Get Raise
APPOINTED — Martin Harmon.
Herald editor, was appointed by
Governor Hodges Wednesday to
the State Probation Commission.
Hannon Named
To State Body
Governor Luther H. Hodges an
nounced in Raleigh Wednesday
appointment of Martin Harmon,
Kings Mountain Herald editor, to
the State Probation commission.
The five-member commission,
appointed by the governor, serves
in an advisory capacity to the di
rector of the commission, who is
W. F. Bailey.
Governor Hodges discussed the
possible appointment with Mr.
Harmon by telephone Tuesday
night.
Mr. Harmon, Herald editor and
publisher since 1945, is a Kings
Mountain native, son of Mr. and
Mrs. M. L. Harmon. He is a form
er vice-president and currently a
director of the North Carolina
Press association. A graduate of
the University of North Carolina,
hie also attended the Plonk School
of Creative Arts, Asheville. He
is a former manager of the Albe
marle Merchants Association and
Chamlter of Commerce, a former
news editor of the Stanly News
and Press, and a member of Boy
ce Memorial ARP church, He is a
navy' veteran of World War II.
Mr. Harmon was appointed to
fill the vacancy created by resig
nation of C. B. Holding, Raleigh.
The term will expire May 2S, 1959.
SEEK REGISTRANT
The Cleveland County Select
ive Service board is seeking the
whereabouts of a registrant,
Joe Willis Hutchins, last
known addresses the Old Mill
and Gantt street, Mrs. Clara
Newman, clerk to the board,
said this week.,
For Mayor: Bridges Vs. Bridges;
Saunders Also Earlybird Runner
By MARTIN HARMON
Kings Mountain voters have
some prospect of choosing a ma
yor next May from two office
holders both surnamed Bridges, as
well as at least one other candi
date.
City Commissioner and Mayor
Pro Tempore Ben H. Bridges ac
knowledges he has eyes on the
mayoral seat of Glee A. Bridges,
now in his third term and a vet
eran of both city and county po
litical hustings
Another candidate, openly run
ning unofficially, is David L.
Saunders.
Will Mayor Glee Bridges run
again?
“I’d kinda figured on retiring
at the end of this term,” Mayor
Bridges commented, “but I don’t
know. If Ben runs, I just might
make him fight for it.”
Mr. Saunders, owner of a dry
cleaning establishment, held a
city commissionership briefly by
appointment, when Ladd W. Ham
rick resigned. He did not seek
re-election.
Ben H. Bridges, in acknowledg
ing his bead on the top spot, said
he has many long-term plans for
the city which he would like to
see carried through to fruition,
including paving of all city:
streets, improvements to city
stadium, and rebuilding of the
electrical system.
It is an open secret that Ben
H. Bridges is the “power” at City
Hall today, in that he, Com-;
mtssioners Boyce Gault and Cole
man Stroupe customarily vote to
gether on all issues and there
fore have the votes to control any
issue.
Mayor Bridges, in turn, has the!
authority of the mayor’s office,
and the duty of administering
board policy.
Outwardly, the current adminis
tration has appeared almost com
pletely harmonious. Commissioner
Ross Alexander is regarded as
the Mayor's man, with Commis
sioner Luther Bennett somewhere
in the middle between the two
wings.
There has been some specula
tion that Ben Bridges wouldn’t
want to seek the mayor’s office
without adoption by the city of
the city manager system, but the
probable mayoral candidate said
this week, “I don’t think that’s
too necessary. We have a good
group of department heads.”
Ben H. Bridges had been pre !
viously quoted by Paul Ledford,
whom he defeated for commis
sioner last year, as telling Mr.
Ledford he expected to seek the
mayor’s post.
Mayor Bridges served as mayor
during his first term as a part
time mayor. For the past two
terms, he has been a full-time
mayor. He is currently being paid|
$4500 per year for his services,
including both his city salary, gas
department salary, and oar ex
pense allowance. The law permits
the city to pay its mayor not loss
than $50 per month, nor more
than $500.
More Seats
For Stadium
City "Maybe"
City employees may get a raise
of four to five percent and sports
fans may get some extra sitting
room at City Stadium.
The city schools, per action of
the city commission, won’t have to
pay any street assessments in the
future.
The two “maybes” were out
growth of commission conversa
tion Tuesday night. Ben H. Bridg
es suggested that salary and wage
raises had not beenmade in sev
eral years and could be made out
of the bulging city surplus from
last year. He suggested that de
partment heads bring in some re
commendations not to exceed four
to five percent range.
Mr. Bridges also advanced the
stadium improvements question,
and Mayor Glee A. Bridges re
ported that Wright & Sons had
provided a “more or 'less” figure
of $4500 as the likely cost of ad
ding another set of concrete blea
chers to the stadium seating ca
pacity.
Comm. Coleman Stroupe ob
jected to the “more or less” quo
tation, but Clerk Joe McDaniel
explained that location of the ad
ditional construction had not been
determined, nor had specifications
been provided the concrete block
making firm.
Action exempting the school
board from paying street • paving
assessments was unanimous, aft
er Mayor Bridges had reported
the board of education said it
wouldn't provide road right-of
way without assessment relief
and also had stated the schools
should be exempt anyway, as
churches are.
In other actions, the board:
1) Tabled a request from Casey
Jones for the city to place what is
known as Stroupe Alley on its
proper boundary. Mayor Bridges
said the alley is not city proper
ty. Ben Bridges had reported Mr.
Jones threatened a suit against
the city.
2) Named Mrs. Dean McDaniel
a clerk in the city office at a sal
ary of $40 per week.
Mica Official
Douglas Dies
Hamilton Douglas, 70, secretary
and director of Kings Mountain
Mica Company, Inc., died last
Thursday in an Atlanta, Ga., hos
pital.
Mr. Douglas, an Atlanta lawyer,
succumbed to a heart attack. He
had not previously been ill, hav
ing been at his office the day Pre
vious to his death.
Active in the mica industry for
more than 25 years, hb had been
president of English Mica Co.,
Spruce Pine, for more than 20
years, and an officer of the Kings
Mountain company since 1950. He
was last in Kings Mountain in
May to attend a regular meeting
(Continued on Page Eight)
Immunity Provided
By Shots Unknown
Uncertainty as to the length
of effectiveness of the Salk po
lio vaccine was expressed by
Dr. Z. P. Mitchell, county
health officer, who said his de
partment assumed the shots
provided immunity for two to
three years. His department, he
added had been unofficially
administering shots each year
until receipt of a memorandum
from the state health board
saying yearly shots were not
necessary but giving no infor
mation as to the frequency of
injections. The recentness of
the vaccine discovery accounts
for the uncertainty according
to the top county health offi
cer. A staff member of a local
doctor's office supplied infor
mation that they thought the
shots provided permanent im
munity.
In polio cases, the county
health unit investigates the
condition of the patient secur
ing blood samples which are
sent to the state board of
health for study and quaran
tining members of the family
under 16 years of age and
other minors possibly in asso
ciation with the polio victim.